Clowning Around: Syrian Kids Begin to Heal Through Laughter

Chilean clown Claudio, right, and American clown David Clay, left, members of "Clowns Without Borders," perform for children at a Syrian refugee camp in the eastern town of Chtoura, in Bekaa valley, Lebanon on June 6, 2014.Bilal Hussein / AP

The Syrian children sat in guarded silence as the clowns tumbled out in a blur of colorful polka dots and suspenders, then burst into laughter as one of the performers kicked her glittery high heels into the air to the toots of a blue trombone.

One of the clowns strummed a guitar while gliding around on stilts. Another, his face painted like a sad mime, juggled three white globes in the air in a show set against the backdrop of a makeshift tent camp in Lebanon.

For the 50 or so children in attendance, all of them refugees from the civil war in neighboring Syria, the clowns provided a brief escape from the horrors they've seen and the challenges of growing up far from home. They are among the more than 1 million Syrians who have flooded into Lebanon over the past three years, fleeing a war that has ripped apart their homeland.

Syrian refugee children smile while watching members of "Clowns Without Borders" perform at a Syrian refugee camp in the eastern town of Chtoura, in Bekaa valley, Lebanon, on June 6, 2014.Bilal Hussein / AP

The 45-minute show in a camp in Bar Elias, in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, was put on by Clowns Without Borders, an international humanitarian group that uses laughter to help those suffering from the trauma of armed conflict.

Aid groups are struggling to meet the needs of the estimated 2.7 million refugees who have fled Syria, most of them women and children. With resources stretched, providing food, shelter and other basics often comes ahead of treating the less visible psychological wounds.

But for some refugees, cracking a smile and breaking into full-throated laughter is an important part of healing.

"People ask, 'Is clowning worthwhile? Should we spend money on clowning?' I look at the show today and say yes," said 34-year-old David Clay, a volunteer joined by Choucair, Chilean Claudio Martinez and fellow American Luz Gaxiola.